1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a device for melt spinning and cooling a filament bundle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
When synthetic filaments are melt-spun from a polymer melt using a spinneret with a plurality of passages, a plurality of strand-like filaments extrude from the spinneret. The filament strands coming out of the spinnerets must be cooled before being taken up in the form of threads or thread bundles after further treatment. The cooling medium used is preferably air, which flows perpendicularly to the thread direction and is trained onto the filaments. The cooling air can permeate the filament bundle from the exterior toward the interior or from the interior toward the exterior. The present invention relates to the type of device in which the cooling air stream permeates a filament bundle from the interior toward the exterior as described, for instance, in German Laid-Open Publication DE 37 08 168 A1.
In the known device, the filament bundle is produced by an annular spinneret of a spinning device. A cooling unit is provided below the spinning device and comprises a coolant dispersing head that is substantially centered relative to the spinneret. This coolant dispersing head is connected to a holding device through which a cooling medium is introduced into the interior of the coolant dispersing head. The coolant dispersing head has a porous shell that is made, for instance, of a sintered material, such that the cooling air flowing into the interior of the coolant dispersing head exits radially therefrom and permeates the filament bundle. In this type of device, the coolant dispersing head can be displaced between an operating position and a standby position to permit startup of spinning the filament bundle at the beginning of the process. In the operating position, the coolant dispersing head is held in contact with the spinning device directly underneath the spinneret. In the standby position, the coolant dispersing head is held at a distance from the spinneret, so that melt particles falling off the spinneret do not impair the coolant dispersing head. In the prior-art device, the coolant dispersing head is guided completely out of the spinning area when in the standby position for this purpose, thereby causing especially prolonged downtimes if the process is interrupted.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a device of the initially described type wherein the spinneret can be rapidly and safely separated from the coolant dispersing head if the process is interrupted.